Ukraine managed to bring back 189 Ukrainians from Russian captivity, including military service members and two civilians, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Dec. 30.
The Ukrainian Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War (POWs) called it one of the largest prisoner exchanges since the start of the full-scale war in 2022.
"We are working to free each and every one from Russian captivity. This is our goal. We do not forget anyone," Zelensky said on Telegram.
The freed captives included soldiers who defended Azovstal and Mariupol, the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant, the Snake Island, and other sections of the front.
Eighty-seven Armed Forces service members, 43 National Guard members, 33 border guards, and 24 sailors were among those released, according to the headquarters. Azov fighters were also freed during the latest exchange, Zelensky said.
Among the released were two journalists-turned-soldiers: Mariupol journalist Oleksandr Hudilin and former journalist of the Espreso channel Roman Borshch.
As of Dec. 30, Ukraine freed 3,956 people from Russian captivity since the start of the full-scale war, including 1,358 who were released this year. Some of the freed captives have been held by Russia for more than two and half years and suffer chronic diseases and injuries, the headquarters said.
At the same time, 150 Russian military service members were released from Ukrainian captivity as part of the exchange, the Russian Defense Ministry said. The United Arab Emirates helped mediate the prisoner swap, according to Moscow.
Ukraine and Russia held numerous prisoner exchanges throughout the full-scale war with the mediation of a third-party country. The previous swap occurred in mid-October, with each side bringing back 95 prisoners.
Earlier in December, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban claimed that he approached Ukraine and Russia with an offer of a Christmas truce and a prisoner exchange, a proposition he said Kyiv rejected.
Ukraine's Presidential Office responded that a major prisoner swap by the end of the year was being discussed but denied any contact between Kyiv and Budapest on the matter.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
